CharacterExploration: Angela - The Best Friend You Could Ever Ask For

Angela Webber
By:

Sariedee

Everybody loves Angela Weber.

No really, they do. This fact leads me to question, why do we not see much Angela in fan fiction? When I saw that Angela was up for character exploration, I was determined to find out why. I wracked my brain try to find Angelas. See, I am not a writer of fan fiction, but a reader. I read a LOT of fic, so in order to find Angelas, I turned to my authors. I am extremely grateful for the amazing authors that took time out and responded to help me out! We all agreed that Angela is the least utilized character in Twilight fan fiction.

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Canon Angela: What could have been…

Angela seems to be underutilized, even by Mrs. Meyer herself. She’s such a great secondary character that was never really developed. As we hear from Edward in Midnight Sun, Angela is really the only student at Forks High that has pure intentions toward Bella. As

halojones

says:

I do think of Angela as Bella’s one true protective human friend who has her back.

Angela and Ben are the only humans that overrode the natural instinct to avoid the Cullens and attempted to form friendships. Unfortunately, Angela is left behind as Bella enters the world of the supernatural.

Quote by

windchime:

She’s a foil to Jessica (comparing the ditzy to with the sensible, the immature with the mature, the selfish with the kind), she is a sounding board for Bella (eg: Eclipse), she is use to show more facets of Edward and Bella’s characters. I think mainly she is used this way-as a means for other main characters to develop and expand.

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Perceptions: Saint Angela

It seems we all see Angela the same way. Almost every description of her was the same. She’s honest, trustworthy, and loyal; she’s our dream friend and all around great person. She’s that friend you haven’t seen in years, but makes it feels like yesterday. She’ll defend you, pick you up when you’ve been knocked down. She listens to you, supports you no matter what, and gives the best advice. My first thoughts were that she is typically very similar to Bella, and she is always what Bella needs her to be. She adapts to each situation as a character. It was actually

ElleCC

’s Bella in chapter 4

A Murmur of Fire in the Vein

that got me thinking more about how Angela is portrayed.

The crowds I had run with had always been made up of, well, Angelas. Studious, hard- working, straight-laced kids. They weren’t opposed to fun, but they usually had it in moderate doses.

In other words, kids like me.

Honestly, we may have Angela Weber on a pedestal, and it hard for us to think of her as anything other than saintly. As

vjgm

says:

I think it is a tough road to characterize Angela in a way other than a good person, always there for Bella because to change her character is almost more of a stretch than to make Edward a bad boy.

In my opinion, she’s exactly right, and this is the primary reason we don’t see more of Angela in fan fiction. Most authors are afraid to use her, and I honestly understand why. We expect Jessica to be self centered, Lauren to be a bitch, Mike to be over eager. Anytime you stretch beyond that you have to work hard to prove that character to your reader.

WndrngY

put it best by saying:

I have to say, the few stories where she’s totally different (i.e. slutty, snarky, bitchy, etc.) I find pretty disturbing and somewhat off-putting.

Angela is not a character that is used just to have a recognizable name. Fandom writers use her very carefully and really put some thought into her character. Because of these reasons, it is rare to find Angela used in fics.

Jeesiechressie

:

We routinely see her in background capacity, but she is rarely brought to the forefront of anything as more than a caricature of a nice girl. She is the sweet matronly good girl no matter which fic you're reading. That in and of itself is interesting, because she is the least prone to the bastardization of fanfiction.

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Fic Angela: We couldn’t have done it without you

She’s the best friend these Bella’s could ever have. Without Angela, these stories just wouldn’t be the same. She’s imperative to Bella’s decision making processes and who knows where things would have gone without her guidance. Typically these Angelas carry all of our favorite canon characteristics, but expanded. Here are some excellent uses of Angela.

The most popular Angela right now in fan fiction (determined by a

poll

) is in

A Murmur of Fire in the Vein

by

ElleCC

. After an isolating relationship with Edward, and a terrible break up Bella desperately needs someone outside of the Cullen’s to rely on, and Angela is it. She’s honest and unbiased and she makes Bella look at the difficult issues in her relationship with Jasper. She’s pivotal, and no other character could fill her shoes.

Coming to Terms

by

GinnyW 31

was a very close second. Bella’s in a new place and quickly finds herself in a difficult situation and her assistant Angela quickly becomes her best friend. And in an interesting twist, Angela knew the Cullen’s first. Ginny says:

I wanted all of the people that Bella surrounded herself with to be closely tied to the Cullens, but for Bella not to know that. And really, that's because it gives off the sense that her encounter with Edward was fate and there was a certain inevitability tied to their relationship. So, that's why Angela was tied to the Cullens. And I like her as a steadfast, reliable friend.

There would be no

Not Like This

by

Pomme_de_Terre

without Angela. After a chance encounter with a shockingly different Bella than she remembers, Angela drops everything in order to save Bella. If it weren’t for Angela, Bella would not survive. This really is a beautifully written story with a great example of who Angela is.

Hydraulic Level 5

by

Gondolier

really shows Bella’s ability to have a life independent of Edward. Gondolier says:

Through Angela and their dreams for SwanWeber, she survives a devastating divorce and becomes stronger, more confident, more able to stand on her own two feet.

The perfect example of super supportive Angela is

The Trip Home

by

MsKathy

. Angela is accepting of Bella’s situation instantly. MsKathy says:

Angela in TTH is definitely Bella’s safe place. Bella sees her as a peer, and actually someone she looks up to,

Angela really helps Bella accept herself and her situation for what it really is, and encourages her in her decisions.

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Outside of the Box: She’s Not Your Average Angela

Every now and then we have author’s who are brave enough to explore Angela in a new way.

The Wingman

by

Ninapolitan

- Well, Nina says it best “Well in the Wingman she is not canon AT ALL, mainly b/c it'll be a cold day in hell before I attempt to write anyone in canon. She's the Reverend's daughter BUT, she's also Jake's former love, they used to skinny dip and run around nudie. She's also got tattoos and loves to have sex and is very open about it.”

The Caged Bird

by

Kristen Nicole

- Although she hasn’t been seen much, matronly librarian Angela is a great friend to Bella, and helps her find an escape from the religiously fanatical Renee.

Bitter Sweet Symphony

by

I'mwiththevampires08

- We see Angela here as someone with a past relationship with Edward.

Horizons

by

Megsly

- Although she plays a small role, it is a very important one. She’s mother to who we believe is Ben.

Inked

by

ARenee363

- Bartender, friend, and ying to Emmett’s yang.

And of course, check out the entries for the

Love for the Unloved

contest!

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Advocates for Angela

If I learned one thing in examining Angela, it is that we would all like to see more of her, and not just as a secondary character.

Ysar

says:

Angela’s goodness doesn’t usually translate into good conflict, so she gets overlooked. I’d like to see someone take her and go past her kindness and relationship with Ben. Sure, she can be the nice girl with the good guy, but she’s bound to have opinions and feelings that aren’t bordering on sainthood.

She couldn’t have said it better! Somewhere along the way in doing research I have become the Angela advocate, so I urge you writers-next time, consider Angela! In the words of

Miss Boo Boo Kitty

:

It is sad that Angela doesn't get enough face time in fic, but maybe with this character exploration more people will think about using her more. I can say that since I first read this email two days ago, it's made me think of using Angela a lot more than I ever have in the past. Thank you for that!

Angela is a great character with unlimited potential-show her some love!

Sariedee

is a twitter obsessed, author stalking, fan fic fanatic who has written nothing, but reads everything! This is her very first article, so go easy! (and who, despite warnings, did not acquire the herp while writing this article lol)

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Archived Explorations:

Upcoming Characters:

Rosalie, Paul/Quil/Jared, James/Victoria.